


Jinx's Top 20 of 2020

by JinxQuickfoot



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:01:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28106697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JinxQuickfoot/pseuds/JinxQuickfoot
Summary: My Top 20 MCU fics posted to Ao3 in 2020. Basically, just a recommendations list of excellent fics by excellent authors for your reading pleasure. Happy Holidays!
Relationships: Bruce Banner & Tony Stark, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Steve Rogers & Tony Stark, others
Comments: 44
Kudos: 29





	Jinx's Top 20 of 2020

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Fluencca](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fluencca/gifts), [usa123](https://archiveofourown.org/users/usa123/gifts), [Ranni](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ranni/gifts), [S0lstice](https://archiveofourown.org/users/S0lstice/gifts), [onward_came_the_meteors](https://archiveofourown.org/users/onward_came_the_meteors/gifts), [blondsak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blondsak/gifts), [MillyVeil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MillyVeil/gifts), [killerqueenwrites](https://archiveofourown.org/users/killerqueenwrites/gifts), [itsreallylaterightnow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsreallylaterightnow/gifts), [CapGirlCanuck](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CapGirlCanuck/gifts), [16woodsequ](https://archiveofourown.org/users/16woodsequ/gifts), [Teeelsie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Teeelsie/gifts), [QueenOfALotOfDifferentWorlds](https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenOfALotOfDifferentWorlds/gifts), [awesomesockes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/awesomesockes/gifts), [whumphoarder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/whumphoarder/gifts), [ShootWithIntentToKill](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShootWithIntentToKill/gifts), [Aelaer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aelaer/gifts), [StellaLuna365](https://archiveofourown.org/users/StellaLuna365/gifts), [seekrest](https://archiveofourown.org/users/seekrest/gifts), [StarkLove_Phyllis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarkLove_Phyllis/gifts), [frostysunflowers](https://archiveofourown.org/users/frostysunflowers/gifts), [heyjupiter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjupiter/gifts).



> Hello all! I was meant to be saving this for Christmas Day but as a new job and some (minor) health issues have caused a bit of a delay updating my [Whumptoberverse](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1921831) series, I'd thought I'd release it now. These are my picks for the Top 20 MCU fics of 2020. I did put some rules on this to keep it to twenty (and there were some really tough choices), which can be seen in the fic below.
> 
> Happy Holidays everyone!

Rules: 

1) One fic per author. Many of these wonderful, incredible, talented writers put out multiple excellent fics this year, so I limited their place on this list to my favorite entry from them in 2020.

2) The work had to be **completed** in 2020 to qualify, even if the first chapter was posted earlier. WIPs weren't eligible.

3) No Team Cap or Team Iron BS, because I don't go in for that kind of thing. And I don't think fics that treat any character as a garbage person while glorifying their faves is good writing anyway. 

4) The works **aren't ranked from one to twenty.** They're basically in the order I found them in my bookmarks. Because I love all these fics so much, I couldn't bear to try and put them in any kind of order.   
  
Ok, let's get into the list! 

**1) The Art of Losing by Fluencca**

_“Pete, there’s always something more to say to the people you love. That’s what makes the relationship worth having.”_

Endgame? What Endgame? No, Tony is totally NOT dead, right?

He is. Tony died. So did Natasha. It was tragic. And while we have the gift of fanfiction to pretend otherwise, this brave and exceptionally well-written fic faces that truth head-on from Peter's point of view. The fic is divided into two chapters; the first with Peter dealing with grief like a normal teenager, and the second dealing with it like a superhero. Oh, and get this - it's completely canon compliant, right up to 101-year-old Cap giving Peter life advice. Just...go read it, ok?

**2) The Imposter by usa123**

_But there was only silence. As panic swelled within him, Tony looked down at Steve to see those same silver irises and a complete lack of emotion on Steve's face. He kicked out, going for Steve's groin, but the supersoldier just turned and slammed Tony into the wall hard enough for him to see stars._

_"Steve," Tony gasped, his free hand scrabbling at the hand around his throat, but Steve said and did nothing other than tighten his grip_.

AU where Bucky returns to the Tower and starts living with the Avengers after The Winter Soldier. After Steve is grievously injured after an attack on the president's life, the super-soldier starts acting strange, and Bucky and Tony are forced to work together to save their friend. I am such a sucker for Tony and Bucky team-ups, my favorite ever being 'Forced Alliance' by the same author, and this one delivers. Plenty of Steve whump with a really intriguing mystery at the heart, with the second half of the fic being dedicated to both physical and mental recovery. It's also followed by the lovely epilogue 'Tuesday's at Esthers' where Bucky finds his new favorite sandwich shop.

**3) Voluntary Procedure by Ranni**

_Clint’s smile projects calm calm calm but his eyes scream another message as he picks at the tape securing the IV lock to his hand. He pulls up a corner and quickly presses it back down again, smoothing it over his knuckle with a mock-guilty look. “The way I’ve heard it, it doesn’t hurt.”_

Clint and Natasha see something on a mission they're not supposed to. But that's ok - they won't remember it. This is one of those fics that gives you honest to god _chills._ Then again, it is Ranni, the master of maximum whump from a simple premise. ‘Voluntary Procedure’ contains plenty of hurt Assassin Twins and Protective Avengers - even though those they're trying to protect them from those who are meant to be allies.

**4) Shock Therapy by S0lstice**

_“Peter, please kid, talk to me.” Tony’s voice drew his attention up again and he found it hard to look away from the concern in the unknown man’s eyes. “What’s happening?”_

_What’s happening? He was tied to a chair wearing clothes he’d never seen before, in an unfamiliar building full of people he didn’t recognize who were all staring at him like he was a lab experiment and they were all waiting for the results._

A teenage boy wakes up tied to a chair in a barn with no memory of how he got there. Or his name. Or the name of the man he seems to have been captured with. Classic Tony & Peter whump fic, except this one gets bonus points for having Peter and Tony escape themselves without the usual Rhodey deus ex machina, and for the fun amnesia twist. 

**5) October 2020 Prompts by onward_came_the_meteors**

_Bruce took a breath. “I fucked up.”_

_“You did.” Normally, this would’ve been a precursor to Bruce winning the argument, but this was Tony Stark. Even when people did win arguments against him, he didn’t listen. Or it wasn’t that he didn’t listen, it was he somehow heard other people telling him not to do something and took it the opposite way. No wonder he hung around Bruce. “But you know what? The rest of us fuck up all the time. Read my Wikipedia page. Hell, read Thor’s Wikipedia page. Even our righteous leader literally destroyed D.C. like a month ago.”_

Ok, so I might be cheating a little by putting a whole series on this list, but screw it, every fic in this Whumptober is a gem. There's a variety of ships and platonic pair-ups to suit everyone, although the overall focus skews towards Tony/Bruce. Fics are decent lengths, typo-free, and feel like complete stories in their own right. This is also some of the best characterization work I've seen anywhere in the Marvel fandom for the original six Avengers. Especially Thor, who feels seamlessly integrated into the team and true to character as opposed to the usual loud, MAN OF IRON, SHIELD BROTHER fare. Genuinely funny with real feels thrown in there; I can't recommend this series highly enough. Standouts for me include ‘Then I'm Sure It'll Go Off Without A Hitch,’ ‘Trust Me, I'm a Doctor’ and ‘All Action and No Talk.’

**6) Falling by MillyVeil**

_He exhales with a shudder and lifts his shaking hands to scrub at his eyes. He’s not restrained. No cuffs, no ropes, nothing, they’d just made him get up on this fucking chair. It's a deceptively innocent thing; standing on it shouldn't be that hard, but when you're sleep-deprived to the degree Clint is right now it's almost impossible. His balance is shot. His legs tremble and burn from having to continuously correct for the tiny unbalance in the stool’s legs. And his eyes keep sliding shut._

Sometimes the best whump comes from the simplest of ideas. Chapter 1: Clint is captured by enemy forces who don't let him sleep. Chapter 2: Phil helps him through the aftermath. Both chapters are tense and heartstring-tugging in their own right, as Clint getting pulled out of his captor's clutches turns out to not mean salvation just yet. (Also, what is it about Clint whump that is so compelling? Give me all the Clint whump, please and thank you.)  
  
  


**7) Fate (Up Against Your Will) by blondsak**

_“Gotta keep your eyes open, Pete. Remember?” Tony pleads as soon as Peter startles himself back to wakefulness, somehow still standing up. He looks around with bloodshot eyes, only to moan in frustration and clutch at his hair when he belatedly recalls where they are, the nightmare they're living. He doesn’t remember Tony telling him to keep his eyes open before, but the distress in his tone is all too familiar._

_He wonders how much longer it’ll be before he doesn’t catch himself in time._

_How much longer until he all but pulls the gun’s trigger with his own hand and sends a bullet through Tony’s skull._

Continuing the theme of sleep deprivation, this one-shot sees a mysterious villain (although context points to Quentin Beck) put our favorite Irondad duo in the following predicament; Peter needs to stay standing in a square for seventy-two hours in order to save Tony's life. Cue hallucinations, off-tune AC/DC and WHUMP. The scene is suitably tense while also keeping both Tony and Peter's snark and wit alive throughout. I've also always had a soft spot for 'Peter saves Tony' stories, as it's usually the other way around, and this one nails it.

**8) Held On As Tightly As You Held Onto Me - Whumptober 2020 by itsreallylaterightnow & killerqueenwrites**

_“Stark.” Thanos takes a step forward, pulling Peter with him by the hand around the back of his neck._

_Tony is frozen. Feet rooted to the ground. Is he even breathing?_

_“I saw you,” Thanos continues, “in my traitorous daughter’s memory drive. So many memories of you. Talking about the son you had lost. Going further back, I saw you hold him as he died.” He drags Peter around in front of him, ignoring his struggles. “I’m sure that’s not something you wish to experience again.”_

My _other_ favorite Whumptober of 2020. This one is Peter & Tony based, although plenty of other characters make appearances too. The fics aren't related but do all feel like well-thought-out, completed short stories. And the sass. The unbelievable sass. I can feel Peter and Tony talking to me from the page - they nail their voices so well right down to the imaginative, off-the-bat quips. Tony is such a dad without it being heavy-handed; Peter feels like the intelligent, good-hearted teenager he's meant to be. All the takes on the prompts feel original and every story feels unique. If I had to do a quick shortlist of favorites scenarios, they would be ‘In the hands of the enemy’ (Tony has to choose between Peter & Rhodey), ‘A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day’ (Thanos takes Peter hostage on the battlefield) and ‘Let's Hang Out Some Time’ (Gargan's revenge for the ferry incident.) 

**9) Dream Again by CapGirlCanuck**

_Sometimes she sees him fall. Sometimes she falls over him. Sometimes there is fire and smoke and a shadow she can’t shake. Sometimes there is blood and it isn’t him. And then it is._

This was one of the hardest choices for the 'one fic per author rule', because CapGirlCanuck has written so many beautiful fics this year, but at the end of this day this tribute to Chadwick Boseman won out. There were many of these when the actor behind T'Challa passed away, but this one captured both the grief and the hope in such a unique way. As always, the writing is impeccable, and if this appeals to you I also strongly recommend 'Watch the Stars (Count the Fallen)', in which Steve and Thor discuss their lost brothers, 'There's No Star Wars Reference for This', which sees Ned comforting Peter through Tony's death, and Eye of the Storm, which is Steve and Bucky, brothers2infinity

RIP Chadwick. You are sorely missed. 

**10) Do Over by 16woodsequ**

_If possible, Steve grows stiffer than he’d been this whole time, and his fingers dent slightly into the cardboard box in his hands. “Actually, I’ve—” His eyes dart down to glance at Tony for a second before flicking away again. “I’ve left SHIELD. For the time being.” His words drag out of him like chips off an ice block, and his eyes remain fixed on the elevator doors, letting Tony know that the current subject is not a pleasant one._

_“Oh,” he says intelligently. “Well. Alright then.”_

I was torn between putting this one and 'Uncovered Issues', featuring an adorable de-aged Steve Rogers, on the list, but my usual bias against de-aging fics means this one won. I am forever a sucker for Steve & Tony fics, where these two opposing personalities slow down enough to figure each other out and find an unlikely ally and friend in the other.  
  
‘Do Over' sees Steve move into the Tower after the Battle of New York, only to completely remove himself from all company and cut himself off from friends and co-workers. With the rest of the Avengers otherwise occupied, it's left to Tony to draw Steve out of his shell and figure out what's going on. I won't ruin the reveal in the third chapter, because holy crap it's a good reveal, and Tony and Steve talking it out is perfection. Oh, and bonus amazing Pepper Potts appearances.

**11) Three-Quarters Fine by Teeelsie**

_He’s an idiot, he knows it; he’s compromised and he shouldn’t be on missions with Barton. No, that’s not really the issue. He shouldn’t be sleeping with Barton. But knowing that and doing something about it are two completely different things._

So I don't tend to go in for shipping fics. I have nothing against them; I just find platonic relationships more interesting. Enter WinterHawk. And my new OTP. Thank you Teeelsie.

'Three-Quarters Fine' sees Bucky and Clint off on a mission together, while both hiding that they want their relationship to be more than friends with benefits. Plenty of badassery, whump, and revealed feelings ensue. There's snark, there's top-notch sniper skills, there's impromptu surgery in a morgue. As someone who finds actions scenes and medical whump incredibly difficult to write, I have so much admiration for this fic and one of Teeelsie's other stellar WinterHawk entries, ‘Superior'.

**12) 5 Times Tony took care of an Avenger and 1 Time they took care of him (whether or not he liked it) by QueenOfALotOfDifferentWorlds**

_“No.”_

_“Yes.”_

_“No.”_

_Five minutes later – and wasn’t that a record worthy of boasting about, refusing Natasha for five whole minutes – the Black Widow dumped the Sucker™ Tony Stark, genius, billionaire, philanthropist and former playboy made nursemaid on Clint’s floor._

One of my favorite things about Ao3 is finding authors who, despite writing the exact same characters as I am, manage to do things I could never do. Like crack. Laugh-out-loud, hilarious, and yet still heart-warming crack, which is what this fic (and indeed what the MCU Crack Fics series) is. Watch Tony stumble from injured/sick teammate to teammate, thinking he is failing spectacularly while inadvertently tapping into that heart of gold we all love so much. Favorites include dealing with a grumpy, Bronchitis-stricken Clint, a hypothermic Peter, a Natasha with insomnia, and a panicking Bruce. And of course, they all repay the favor in the end. Whump and angst is great fun, but best broken up with some more light-hearted and humorous fare. 

**13) Down to the Wire by awesomesockes & whumphoarder**

_After another five minutes in which Tony is only getting more awake, he sits up in frustration. “Alright, this isn’t gonna work,” he mutters, slapping his hand at the lamp on the bedside table. “Can’t sleep with you staring at me.”_

_Steve frowns. “I could turn the chair around…?”_

_Tony rolls his eyes. “Just get in the damn bed, Rogers,” he groans, lifting the edge of the covers up on Pepper’s side._

I can't believe one of my favorite fics of 2020 is about Tony vomiting, but here we are. The sickfic as a genre took a while to grow on me but, ok, I'll admit I am now officially a sucker for usually stubborn, 'I can deal with this myself' teammates having to lean on each other for support. 

The premise is simple but gross; Tony contracts a stomach bug after having his jaw wired shut. Steve is the only team member around to play nursemaid, and he and Tony try to make the best of it. This is part of the unbelievably hilarious 'Christ, What Now?' series which I'm not going to even try to name favorites from because we would be here all night. Seriously, if you need a chuckle, which we all do this year - check it out.

**14) Nothing But A Trail of Dust by Shoot With Intent to Kill**

_Barton snorted, and finally looked up. “It was broken when we got the place. Just something to keep me busy. You know, Ross already tried to get me to talk. Even if I did know where they’re hiding, there is no way in hell I’d tell anyone. I don’t betray my friends.”_

_Tony bit back a scathing comment at that. “I’m not here for information. I’m not here to fight either.”_

If I could have any scene in canon that they didn't give us, I'd probably choose Tony & Clint making up after Civil War. It makes sense why they didn't, with Tony & Clint never being a central friendship to the movies, but it still rankles me that the last time they're shown interacting is Clint yelling at Tony on the Raft. I wrote my own version of that in 'Room 101', and I hope it’s as half as good as this one. In a fandom that can get very caught up in its sides, it was really refreshing to find a fic that argued both Tony and Clint's points of view with equal weight. It doesn't end with still waters between the two, but the lake is a little calmer, with the promise of full redemption in the future. Fanfic is rarely so challenging as this, but damn it's rewarding when it is.

**15) In Which Ned Becomes the Hero, And Decides Being the Guy in the Chair is Much Safer by Aelaer**

_Doctor Strange was not a bad superhero name at all in Ned's opinion. He might have gone with Doctor Bizarre, if he was going for that sort of angle as a superhero, or maybe Master Bizarre. Yeah, Master Bizarre. That wasn't a bad name at all. If he ever became a superhero, that would definitely be a contender._

Sometimes we come to Ao3 for our favorites. And sometimes we stumble onto those fics we didn't know we wanted until we read them. Ned Leeds & Stephen Strange pair up, anyone? When Ned spies a new superhero taking on a team of bad guys, he gets pulled into the mix until Tony and Peter can come to the rescue. Plenty of Stephen sass and Ned being the best guy in the chair a hero can hope for. What can I say? It works. 

**16) That Time Mr. Stark Became Tony by StellaLuna365**

_“Watch me as I gut him like a pig. As he bleeds in front of you, while you do nothing. Or, I can cut you a deal.” Hammer grinned like a shark, sitting down gracefully in his chair. “You won’t have to watch. I’ll let you walk free, not a scratch, before I kill him. Or, I can kill you instead, and he goes free. Not a scratch. Not a hair touched. You’re going to be the reason he suffers for the rest of his life, or the reason he dies. So…which will it be?”_

If you've even glanced at my ‘Weaknesses’ series, you'll know that I am (more than) mildly obsessed with this trope, so of course this fic made this list. After breaking out of jail, Justin Hammer finds out that Tony Stark has gotten rather close to one Peter Parker. After capturing Peter, Hammer offers him a choice - watch Tony die, or have Tony watch Peter die. No prizes for guessing what Peter chooses, leading to an intense showdown with Peter's life on the line. 

**17) it might not right now (but it's gonna hurt soon) by blondsak & seekrest**

_“Almost showtime, Stark,” Beck says giddily into his ear. “Gonna be one hell of a finale. I do apologize in advance that you won’t be here for the encore. But hopefully you’ll enjoy the show before exiting stage right.”_

_Inside the suit, Tony silently screams._

And with that, let's turn the tables and having some Tony being kidnapped to get to Peter instead (Like I said, I'm a sucker for that trope, ok?) And I know I technically already put a blondsak fic on this list, but you can't have a Top 20 Marvel list without including some seekrest, and this is my favorite one they've worked on this year so...sue me, I'm putting it down. Set in a post-Endgame world where Tony survived, Quentin Beck goes after Peter's mentor, trapping him in the Rhino suit and tricking Peter into fighting him. Bonus Sam & Bucky content in the second chapter, with Tony realising that Peter is so much more capable than he's been giving him credit for.

**18) Haunting Illusions by StarkLove_Phyllis**

_Tony’s barely stumbled into the next room when they are thrust into darkness and he feels himself being ripped from Rhodey’s grasp. Before he can even scream, there’s duct tape being placed over his mouth and his hands are forcefully moved behind him where they are secured by some sort of ligament. He struggles against the binds to no avail before he feels a foot hit him square in the back, and Tony ends up slamming hard into the wooden floor._

Shameless Tony whump with Protective Rhodey. Tony & Rhodey's friendships was such a highlight of the MCU, right from Iron Man to Endgame, and this fic works whether you ship them or not. I also am rather partial Tony & Rhodey at MIT fics, and this one delivers. Rhodey's friends invite Tony along to a haunted house that turns out to be more extreme than Tony signed on for. The setting was so interesting I ended up doing some research on the haunted house this fic was based on and...yikes. No thank you. Completely sympathize with Tony in this one. 

**19) Weathering by heyjupiter**

_"I miss him, too," Valkyrie said quietly. "But I believe the journey will do him good. He was unhappy here."_

_"I'm sure you're right."_

_"Still, it's hard to be left behind."_

As fun as kidnappings and sickfics and shenanigans are, sometimes the best fics are just two characters talking things out. I really loved Bruce's and Valkyrie's relationship in Thor: Ragnorok and the hints we got of it in Endgame. In this story, two unlikely friends find they had more in common than they thought. It's the kind of thing the movies didn't have time for, and so lovely to see picked up in fics, especially ones written as well as this.

**20) Every spider has its day (but today is not that day) by frostysunflowers**

_In the gloomy light, he can see large marks on Tony’s face, deep and long and red. He moves closer and falls against Tony’s chest, fumbling at the man’s shoulders._

_"Mister Stark, what happened?" he asks, giving Tony a shake. "Holy shit. Who did this?" Another shake. "Was it Tony Montana? Did he do this?"_

I have never - and I mean never - laughed as hard while reading as I did in this fic. I'm not going to go into it too much, because it's better if you just click on this blind and go in for the ride. I revisit it whenever I'm having a bad day and need to smile, and this fic has never failed. Just...it's so funny. It's so great. And one of those fics where you can just _see_ it happening in your mind as you read. Oh Peter. You disaster child. Why. 

**Author's Note:**

> If you didn't see an amazing fic you read on this list and are thinking, "Jinx! How could you!" It either 1) Didn't comply with the rules above 2) Was based around a character or ship I'm not as interested in or 3) I just haven't read it yet! Comment below your favorite fics of 2020 if you have them; I love this fandom and all it's given through this trying year.
> 
> Links to all fics can be found in my bookmarks.
> 
> Thank you for writing. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being. You make the world brighter.


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